A Malfoy's Tale
by Dreamville
Summary: Even after 50 years, Draco Malfoy still regrets his actions during the Second Wizarding War. So when he is sent back into time, he knows exactly what to do. The problem, his name is no longer Draco Malfoy. Its Neville Frank Longbottom. Oh the horror.
1. Chapter 1: In the Beginning

Draco stood silently on the overgrown lawn, his eyes contemplative as he looked upon his childhood home. He hadn't seen this mansion in nearly 60 years, yet memories of his time there during Voldemort's reign remained as sharp as if it were yesterday.

After Voldemort's death, the Aurors had seized his ancestral home, also known as Voldemort's former headquarters, claiming it as evidence in their ongoing investigation. Draco had been forced to buy a new villa in Hogsmeade, but it was the best decision that he had ever made.

It was there that he'd met Astoria Greengrass, his future wife, and she had filled an emptiness and loneliness inside him that he'd never known existed. Her death had reopened old wounds and made new ones, leaving him uncertain about his future. Perhaps that was why he had returned to Malfoy Manor, because the last time he had felt so lost, confused, and alone it was in this very spot staring at its battered remains.

Taking one last glance at the Manor, Draco chuckled darkly as he turned around and prepared to apparate. "I'm an old man now, that's for sure. I don't have enough time left to be wasting it on old memories better left untouched" thought Draco.

Draco turned quickly and strode toward the Malfoy gate, eager to leave his ancestral grounds so that he could apparate to Gringotts. Stopping in front of the Malfoy gate, he took a second to appreciate its intricate design as it depicted the greatest achievements of the Malfoys throughout history. The vast majority of them were completely fabricated of course, as was the case with all noble houses, but the Malfoys rise to power was nonetheless filled with triumphs and great deeds. Terrible, yes, but great.

Examining the gate, Draco realized with a start that it had changed from what he had remembered.

"Boggarts, the damn gate has the Second Wizarding War on it now" he exclaimed in surprise. Reaching the end of the gate, he felt a shiver creep through his spine as he stared at what could only be a depiction of him, at this very moment, staring at the gate. Or more specifically, him touching the Malfoy ring onto the mystical gate.

Knowing that he should just leave, but unable to resist, Draco slowly lifted his ancestral ring and placed it gently onto the smooth metal of the gate. Suddenly, he heard a crackling and rumbling sound behind him and Draco spun around, his hand hovering over his wand holster.

When nothing happened, Draco slowly crept forward toward the noise, his curiosity overwhelming his common sense. When he arrived at the source, he couldn't help as his mouth dropped in astonishment.

The gargoyle fountain which had dominated the Malfoy lawn throughout his childhood had shifted to reveal a dark passageway with steps that led nearly straight down. Through the tunnel, he could faintly hear the sounds of singing drifting through the air and echoing throughout the wild garden.

Draco could feel his heart pounding against his chest as he approached the passageway, unsure of what he was hearing. Flicking out his wand from his holster, Draco paused as he took in the marble staircase within the passageway which descended deep into the ground and disappeared into the darkness.

"Lumos" Draco whispered, holding his wand in front of him as he took a few uncertain steps down the winding staircase. Suddenly, the Gargoyle shifted once more and the opening behind Draco slammed shut, leaving him trapped inside. Draco debated whether or not to try and blast his way out, before turning to stare into the depths of the tunnel.

"Merlin's raggedy beard," Draco thought as he began climbing down stairs, "I've turned into a damn Gryffindor." As Draco walked down the green marble steps, the darkness around him seemed to twist and move of its own accord while the singing somehow grew louder and yet more indistinct. Shaking his head, Draco gripped his wand tighter as he continued marching down the twisting staircase.

Suddenly, something cackled softly in Draco's ear and he instantly spun around in the voices direction, his wand bursting with magical energy, ready to explode forth. Seeing nothing, Draco had to bite back a curse, the non-magical kind, when disembodied voices suddenly began whispering around him.

"I think he will be join us. Yes I agree. You all care too much about the result, it's all about the journ -oh good, I've very much wanted some new blood, it keeps things entertaining".

Not wanting to hear anymore, Draco turned and began racing down the steps in order to try and put some distance between him and the creatures. Turning the corner, he sprinted forward only to meet nothing but air.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah" Draco screamed as he fell through the air and fumbled with his wand. Before he could cast a spell, Draco slammed hard onto the floor which knocked the air out of his lungs. Getting up slowly off the marble floor, his whole body throbbing with pain, Draco grabbed his wand and cast another _Lumos_ spell. Listening intently, Draco found he couldn't hear the voices anymore.

Glancing up, Draco nearly forgot his pain as he gazed upon an gigantic golden door which was covered with locks, chains, bolts, levers, and other incomprehensible knick knacks that screamed keep out. Striding closer to the door, Draco noticed that a small goblet protruding out of the center of door with his family motto " _Sanctimonia Vincet Semper"_ , or "Blood Conquers All" engraved onto it. Suddenly, Draco knew what to do.

"Sectusempra" Draco exclaimed as he brandished his wand toward his hand. Draco felt a slicing pain as a small cut emerged on his hand and he directed his blood to the goblet. The second his blood touched the goblet, the entire door lit up and began pulsing with magic as a series of clicks, snaps, and clacks came from the door as the latches unlocked. A rumbling sound emanated from the door as it slowly slid open to reveal a humongous cavern. The constant singing, which Draco had come to take for granted, stopped abruptly.

Draco walked forward slowly, his eyes darting around trying to find any potential enemies. He'd spent too much time fighting Dark Wizards in Columbia to not be thoroughly appreciative of the ambush.

"Hello! Whoever you are, I mean you no harm!." he said as he warily stalked forward.

"My name is Draco, by the way" Draco added after some thought.

"We know who you are, Draco Lucius Malfoy" said a deep discombobulated voice from above him. With a strangled yell, Draco stumbled backward as he pointed his wand toward the rock protruding above him where the sound had come from.

Slowly, out of the darkness, the voice emerged. One leg, one arm, one wing at a time until it appeared fully before Draco, a gargantuan gold dragon with long silver hair.

And in that moment, Draco wondered if the door had been meant to keep people out, or to keep that dragon in.

* * *

 **Hello everyone! I've always thought that there is not enough serious Malfoy or Neville fanfiction, nor is their many of these characters going back into time. Thats when this plot bunny hit me, and I couldn't get it out of my mind.**

 **Anyway, please review/favorite/follow as the public response is what fuels me as a writer. Also, since I am a completely new author, I would love your input/criticisms.**

 **Anyway, as always, sweet dreams.**

 **\- Dreamville**


	2. Chapter 2: A History of Malfoy

The dragon leapt from the protruding rock, landing onto the stony floor with a resounding crash that echoed through the cavern. Draco stumbled backwards in desperation, pointing his wand towards the dragon despite knowing that his spells would be like pinpricks to the beast.

The dragon loomed over Draco, its eyes an ethereal silver as it examined him. It stalked forward slowly, each step causing the ground to vibrate from his massive weight. Draco tightened his grip on his wand, before preparing to cast an overpowered light spell in order to try and blind the dragon. He couldn't fight him, his only hope was escape.

Before he could cast the spell, something smashed into his occlumency shields, driving him to his knees. He had never felt legilimency like this. It was as if a thousand thorns simultaneously drove themselves into his defenses, burrowing themselves into his mind. A strangled gasp escaped him as he felt his shields crumble to the relentless assault, when a voice suddenly emanated from within his mind.

"Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius, son of Abraxas, last living descendant of the Malfoy line. Look to us and do not fear, for we are your ancestors" said the deep guttural voice.

Draco gazed upon the dragon, skepticism warring with the hope that he was not about to become dragon food. Slowly, Draco reached out and touched the Dragon's mind, trying his best to ignore the alien wild consciousness before he projected his thoughts.

"I have so many questions, respected elders" said Draco deciding to play along. "How did this happen? How would that be even possible?" The dragon slowly lowered itself to the floor, it's long spiked tail nestling around its neck as it settled in before speaking.

"Before we came to this land, the First lived in France where he conducted research to try and gain immortality. Eventually, the First discovered that through the power of human sacrifice, one could separate his soul from his body and be effectively immortal. He severed his soul and placed it into the most powerful magical creature he could find, a dragon. However, there were side effects".

"Side effects, what do you mean?" Draco asked.

"The First used runic magic to strengthen the connection between his soul and magical signature, but to do so requires something to ground him. So he did something, something that had never been done before. He created a runic name".

Draco wanted to argue with the obviously loony dragon, Runes were simply a more stable version of verbal magics and runic names were nothing more than fairy tales. It was impossible for any form of communication to fully encompass and summarize a person's existence.

Somehow sensing the disbelief, the dragon let out of a blood curdling growl which reminded Draco that debating with a dragon was not a very sensible thing to do.

"For years afterwards, the First didn't realize the side effects of what he had wrought. It was only when his son died that he finally saw what he had done. The First hadn't just tied his own soul to this dragon, he had tied the souls of every person who holds Malfoy blood" the dragon finished.

"Why didn't my father tell me about you? I don't understand, how could I have not known that a dragon lived under our home" questioned Draco, his cuioisity starting to overwhelm his common sense.

"Your father didn't tell you because we wiped our location from his mind, it was too dangerous to allow him to keep that information. Unfortunately, we were unable to wipe the knowledge of our existence because it was tied to his soul." the Dragon replied.

Draco looked at the Dragon questioningly. "Why would you obliviate him? I thought he was a Malfoy, one of you"?

The dragon flicked his tail contemptuously, before replying to Draco.

"Have you never wondered why Voldemort decided to use your home as a base? Your father informed Voldemort of our existence, and Voldemort correctly deduced that our location was likely at Malfoy Manor. He spent the majority of his time looking for us, but we made sure he never found us" the Dragon said with smug satisfaction seeping into his voice.

"But I still don't get it," Draco shook his head, "why would Voldemort go through all of that effort trying to find you? What would he even get out of it?"

The Dragon looked at Draco silently for a moment, before closing his eyes as Draco felt a wave of exhaustion sweep over him through the mental link.

"The greatest feats of magic require human sacrifice Draco, and we, as the culmination of hundreds of thousands of magical souls would have provided him the energy he needed. Voldemort wasn't satisfied with dominion over wizards, he wanted to control of the Muggles as well. And to do that, he needed power, he needed us. But we didn't care to die, so we did everything in our power to ensure he didn't find us."

Draco stood still, his head swimming as he tried to take in all of the information. With a sudden jolt, Draco thought of all the distinctly un-Dracoish things he'd done within the last few hours. Chiefly among them, the fact that he hadn't immediately left and instead decided to risk his life exploring this Merlin forsaken hellhole.

"My father and Voldemort spent months trying to find this place, its impossible that I somehow found this by accident. You wanted me to come here, and you somehow manipulated me into doing it. Why, what reason could you possible have?"

The Dragon didn't say a thing, and for an awkward moment Draco thought that it had gone to sleep. Then, Draco felt something. Immense magical pressure began building making it hard for Draco to breath while Dragon's body began crackling with pure energy. Looking at the Dragon, Draco noticed a rapidly growing black splotch on its scales that radiated dark magic. Suddenly, the pressure dropped and the Dragon stopped shining leaving Draco gasping for breath.

The Dragon stared intensely at Draco, its silvery eyes filled with grim acceptance.

"Draco, we are dieing. Before he was defeated, Voldemort transformed your father's soul into a piece of parasitic magic which is consuming our energy and life force, one soul at a time. That's why you were brought here, because while we may not be able to stop it, you can."

"I can?" said Draco in confusion. He couldn't fathom anything that he could do that a being of immense magical power couldn't do better.

"Draco, we brought you here in order to prevent Voldemort from ever creating this parasite. We will use all of our life energy in order to send you back in time in order to prevent its creation" said the Dragon grimly.

"Wait a minute," said Draco angrily, "Firstly, going back in time is completely magically impossible. Secondly, who even said that I am willing to go back to the past. I have a life here, I've got friends and family that I don't want to leave".

A loud rumbling sound filled Draco's mind before he realized that it was the Dragon laughing. "You don't have a choice Draco, we refuse to die and you will be our salvation. After all, your soul is tied to us as well. If we die, so do you." growled the Dragon.

Once again, the Dragon began shining and the air around Draco suddenly dripped with magical energy. Draco took that as his cue to leave as he scrabbled past the Dragon and sprinted towards the door, desperate to escape the cavern.

He barely made it to the door before the Dragon exploded into burst of light. When the light finally dimmed, Draco was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

 **Hello you saucy bastards, thanks for reading the muddle of assorted knicknacks and tomfoolery that I call a story.**

 **If you enjoyed this chapter, PLEASE FAVORITE AND REVIEW, because I love trading smack talk with you lovely people!**

 **Anyway, as always, sweet dreams!**

 **Dreamville**


End file.
